


A Gentleman's Valentine's Day

by sebastian2017



Category: X-Men (Movieverse), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Trans Alex Summers, Trans Female Character, Valentine's Day
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-02-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 18:34:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,371
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22800316
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sebastian2017/pseuds/sebastian2017
Summary: Hank's never really had a proper Valentine's Day, but then again, neither has Alex, so he tries his best to make it perfect for her.
Relationships: Hank McCoy/Alex Summers
Comments: 2
Kudos: 18
Collections: Valentine's Day XChange





	A Gentleman's Valentine's Day

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Murf1307](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Murf1307/gifts).



> For Murph, who promised to love me forever for transfeminine Alex. Hope you enjoy!

Hank's never been the toughest guy around. Anyone could see that. He'd always been the quiet, nerdy one who stuck to himself in the corner of classrooms. It definitely didn't help that he'd always been advanced in his studies and his classmates had always been considerably older than him. With his mutation, he could have probably taken any of them in a fight if he really wanted to, but he much preferred just letting it all happen and not bringing any attention to himself. The small, skinny little nerd look fitted him quite well, even if it wasn't always accurate. Now that he'd gone and messed himself up with his experiments, he feels more out of place than ever, looking all big and tough and monstrous. Celebrating Valentine's Day is probably the last thing on his mind when he feels as out of place as he does. 

But despite everything, Hank knows Alex probably feels even more out of place amidst everything than he does and even if he's still trying to adjust to his new body and all the new safety measures he needs to even leave the house, there's nothing in the world that can stop that can stop Hank from doing everything he can to give Alex the most disgustingly cliche, sweet, perfect Valentine's Day possible. Hank is ready for all the eye rolling and being called a sap. In fact, he's looking forward to it. Alex can be rough around the edges sometimes, but Hank knows it's just the way she protects herself from a world that very rarely treats her the way she deserves. He's learned to see beyond that. 

The week leading up to the 14th, Hank pays meticulous attention to everything Alex says about the holiday. It comes up occasionally, between Sean's rambles and ads at all the drug stores, but Alex never seems particularly fond of talking about it. After all, most of her life, Alex has been playing the role of charming womanizer. But even that lack of talking about it he considers useful and jots it down with all the rest of his planning notes. 

Hank knows how difficult the world sometimes felt because of his differences and he can only imagine how it is to navigate it like Alex does. It’s why he’s so determined to give her the best possible Valentine’s Day. His prototype for helping him blend in as human passing is still wonky, but Hank takes the risk anyway to go into town. It works, which he’s incredibly pleased about, and he acquires roses and candles and groceries for his plans, which he’s even more pleased about. 

It’s not a horribly complicated plan, but it does take a bit of foresight. There aren't many moments where Hank has a bit of time away from Alex, which he needs to get dinner and their table ready, which means he does most of it a day or two before and leaves it locked away in a room. Maybe reheated Valentine's dinner and two day old flowers isn't the most romantic of nights, but Hank is excited nonetheless. He wakes up on Valentine's Day as excited as he's been in a long time. If only Alex felt the same. Hank is used to Alex being a bit grumpy over breakfast, but when she doesn't ease up much on the frowning and scowling by noon, he worries a bit. 

"Are you all right? You've been a bit moodier than usual," Hank notes, going to sit down next to her on one of the benches by the mansion's pathway. 

Alex grumbles a bit when he sits, but leans her head up against Hank's shoulder which he takes as a good sign. "I just don't really like Valentine's Day. It's... A lot. Lots of expectations, y'know?" 

"I know... But, you don't have to worry about any of that here," Hank promises. "You can be anything you want. The rest doesn't matter." 

"I know. And I know the Professor and Sean are fine about everything, too, but... it's still a lot to handle sometimes," Alex explains, sighing. 

That might be a bit of a wrench in his plans, if Alex is this upset about the day, maybe everything Hank has planned won't be received well, but it's a bit late to take it back now. "Well... I won't lie, I had some Valentine's Day plans. Give them a chance? If you hate it, I promise we can just forget all about it." 

"Oh, Hank... Yeah. I can try to enjoy it. I'm sorry, I don't mean to be such a pessimist about it," she apologizes, reaching over to pat Hank's knee. 

"No, it's okay. It's not my favorite day, either. I just... well, I love you and an excuse to remind you of that seems as good as anything else," he says, shrugging a bit. 

The longer he has to dwell on it, the more embarrassed Hank is about the whole plan he'd made up, so he decides to just get it over with and bring Alex to his plans. Alex doesn't say much as Hank leads her to one of the rooms on the wing they don't use, which Hank tries not to look too deeply into. Still, he does feel a little bit foolish when he unlocks the odor and leads Alex inside to where he's set up a few candles and roses on a table, with a silly little card on the table for Alex. He's just about to start blubbering out apologies when Alex turns to him and leans up to kiss his cheek. 

"You're really sweet," she says, going over to sit down. "Did you make all this yourself?" 

"Yes. Well, the food, I mean. The flowers I bought in town. And the table and candles were already here, obviously, and-" Hank stops himself before he can babble himself into even more embarrassment and simply sits down, as sheepish as ever. "You like it? I know this isn't your favorite day, but I thought you might like a Valentine's Day where you finally had a fella around to treat you right. Like I said, if you hate it, we can leave. Do you hate it? Gosh, I'm sorry, I don't know what I was thinking. I'm sorry, Alex, I don't know what I'm doing." 

"You never stop apologizing, do you? It's okay. I said it's okay. It's sort of perfect, really. I don't know what I'm doing any more than you do, but there's no one else I'd rather have my first proper Valentine's Day with, Hank. Sit down and let's eat, yeah?" Alex suggests, gesturing to the seat in front of her. 

Hank nods and sits down before he can say anything else equally silly. He's always been terrible in social situations and excellent at putting his foot in his mouth when it came to everything except science, but he feels especially ridiculous when it comes to Alex. He just turns into a blubbering mess. Thankfully, Alex is more than used to that by now and she fills the silence for most of their lunch, talking and occasionally prompting him with simple things so he's still a part of the conversation. It's what a lot of their time together is like, save for the rare moments when inspiration strikes Hank or he's explaining his latest project. Sometimes he worries he's too boring for her or that he comes off as a burden, but she's promised him many times that she doesn't mind it. That doesn't stop Hank from worrying, though. 

Which is why he's all but preening at the end of their lunch, when she helps him clean up and kisses his cheek again. "It was perfect. You really are a perfect gentleman, aren't you, Hank?" 

"Well... I try," he says, sure that his fur must have a purple tinge by now from how much he's blushing. 

"Mhmm. It was a great Valentine's Day lunch. Now, I should go train a bit, but I'll see you in our room later tonight for an equally great Valentine's Day night." She winks at him and walks away, leaving him standing there, flustered and stuttering. 

And yes, he's definitely purple now. 


End file.
